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Steelers-Cowboys Preview: Is There a Path for Dallas?
Yinzer Crazy • November 5, 2020
By now you all probably know about what we like to refer to as “The Tomlin Game.”
It's a contest each season that the Steelers are heavily favored against an inferior opponent in which they fall flat.
A few examples from the last handful of years include 2018.
In week 12 of that season the black and gold lost on the road to a Broncos team with Case Keenum as their starting quarterback (who we recently saw playing for the Browns in relief of Baker Mayfield) that finished 6-10.
And then the unforgettable, and unforgivable loss that cemented the “Tomlin Game” adage in stone.
A 24-21 loss against the Raiders in week 14 in the infamous “X-Ray Machine” game, where it looked like Ben Roethlisberger was held out pf the second half following a few bumps and bruises suffered in the first half - possibly in precaution because the Steelers may have thought they could beat the pitiful Raiders with Joshua Dobbs at quarterback.
They didn’t.
And the Raiders finished 4-12 that season.
Naturally, the Steelers went on the next week to beat Tom Brady and the Patriots at home.
It was a year in which Pittsburgh finished 9-6-1, just a half game behind the Ravens for the AFC North crown.
2017 is another year where the Steelers were absolutely stacked - much like 2020.
They finished 13-3, but lost to the Bears at home in week three.
The Bears finished 5-11 that season.
It was a forgettable year in the Steel City that resulted in a loss at the hands of the Jacksonville Jaguars at home in the AFC's Divisional round.
So the age old question begs - do the Steelers play down to their opponents?
Or is the NFL just such a week to week grind that losing a few games is just the reality of the league?
I think there may be a bit of both of those elements working together.
But I’m here with good news Steelers Nation.
This Cowboys team is so crappy that even if the Steelers tried to lose - they couldn’t.
Dallas is 2-6 on the season and are coming off a truly historic loss.
A baffling 23-9 defeat at the hands of the Eagles, in a game where Philadelphia quarterback Carson Wentz became the third starting QB since at least 1992 to win a game despite having two interceptions and two lost fumbles.
He also had less than 150 total yards.
The Cowboys have lost starting quarterback and MVP candidate Dak Prescott for the season due to injury, and backup Andy Dalton is still working his way back from a concussion. He won’t take the field.
Last weekend the Ben DiNucci experiment was ugly - as the former Pine Richland and Pitt product looked like a guppy swimming in a pool of sharks.
So it appears the Cowboys will be starting either Garrett Gilbert or Cooper Rush this weekend.
Who?
Gilbert has appeared in a total of six games since being drafted in the sixth round of the 2014 draft by the then St. Louis Rams.
And Cooper Rush is an undrafted Free Agent out of the 2017 class who also has next to no NFL experience.
Combined, the two have nine career pass attempts.
Combined, Browns wide-receivers Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr. have 13 career pass attempts.
But Cowboys fans would be the first to admit their short-comings are not all on the signal-callers lack of success.
Their offensive-line is severely banged-up.
Formerly a strength of the team - the unit that started in week one for Dallas this season has only played two full games together.
Unfortunately for them - the Steelers lead the NFL in sacks.
TJ Watt and Bud Dupree are licking their chops like Mike McCarthy at a Primanti Brothers.
Watt, Dupree and reigning AFC defensive player of the week Stephone Tuitt have combined for 18 sacks so far this season.
The Cowboys as a team have 17 total defensively.
And it appears I’ve run out of breath before I even had time to talk about the defense of this seasons version of "America’s Team."
They’ve allowed opponents to score 266 combined points this season.
The most in the NFL by a wide margin.
So - Good luck, Cowboys.
Ezekiel Elliott mysteriously popped up on the injury report today with a Hamstring issue.
That seems mighty convenient.
But as I began my preview by stating - there’s still plenty of reasons to anticipate a possible Steelers let-down.
They are coming off their toughest stretch of the season and just played two incredibly physical games at Tennessee and at Baltimore.
And they also of course have been known to play down to their opponents in certain cases.
Mike Tomlin also elected to give his team a practice without full-pads yesterday, according to JuJu Smith-Schuster and multiple sources.
He knows that his guys are banged up.
But he also knows that they can afford it - because the Cowboys are that bad.
Ultimately, there is no path for the Cowboys to win.
You could request a recount all you want.
The Steelers could start an X-Ray machine at quarterback and still likely leave Dallas with a victory.
Prediction:
Las Vegas opened this line at Steelers -14.
I can see that moving towards Steelers -15 prior to the 4:25 kickoff.
Consider this - Dallas is 0-8 against the Vegas line so far in 2020.
They are the first team since the Raiders in 2003 to start the season with eight straight point-spread losses.
It just NEVER works like that in the sports-books of the city that never sleeps.
That is a bit worrisome if you’re a Steelers backer this weekend. Because most wagers will be placed on them.
Given the reasons presented above - I have no doubt that the Steelers will come out victorious.
They will defeat what’s eating Gilbert’s Grape in a Cooper Rush.
But I’m not as confident that they cover the point spread.
I think Roethlisberger and the boys will be motivated to jump out to an early lead and Tomlin will be hoping to rest his starters in the second half - given the fact that the team endured such an early bye-week.
Coach will be looking for every opportunity to find them rest.
I think the best bet in this game is that the Steelers start very fast.
I foresee a 20-3 Steelers halftime lead.
So if you’re going to bet the game - lay your money on the Steelers first-half line (-7.5).
Look for a James Conner touchdown, one Diontae Johnson touchdown, and two Chris Boswell field goals in the first 30 minutes.
Pittsburgh will carry a 27-10 lead into the fourth quarter - and that’s when Tomlin will elect to get the backups some work.
Be weary of a late Cowboys field goal or touchdown in “garbage time” to cover the spread for the first time this season.
Final Prediction: Steelers 27 Cowboys 13
And we’ll all be happy - because most importantly, the Steelers will be 8-0.
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Yinzer Crazy
Story by Yinzer Crazy Contributor Harv Aronson. Contact Harv @ Totalsportsrecall@gmail.com
Story by Yinzer Crazy Contributor Harv Aronson. Contact Harv @ Totalsportsrecall@gmail.com
Story by Yinzer Crazy Contributor Harv Aronson. Contact Harv @ Totalsportsrecall@gmail.com
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